What Your Parents Didn't Tell You
by Destiny78
Summary: ON HIATUS. It's been 21 years since the Final Battle, but the Deathly Hallows have returned, revealing things about Lily & James that Harry never knew. Rated M for future chapters.
1. Prologue

**What Your Parents Didn't Tell You**

Disclaimer: I own nothing Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling owns it all.

A/N: So after abadoning my account years ago, I'm back! I've been thinking about a story like this for years, but undergrad and grad school have been keeping me away. So, even though I'm still working on grad school, I'll try to write this story out.

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><p>The cloaked figure moved silently through the forest, making its way under the star-dotted sky. But this was no time to enjoy the evening; the forest floor was much more interesting at the moment.<p>

The figure tread carefully through the trees, slightly bent over to scan the leaves, roots, and dirt for any sign of the desired object. They could not use Lumos for fear of being seen, and nothing must interrupt this search, absolutely nothing. The boy _had_ to have dropped it somewhere near here; all the history books said that the event occurred near the Acromantulas' nest…

A low rumble of hooves made the person gasp quietly and slide behind a tree. Of course, Centaurs; they had forgotten about the Centaurs. That posed the problem of the beasts having found the precious object years before, putting it in an entirely new hiding place. But then, the person didn't have a problem with killing a few Centaurs to get to it…

Once the herd had passed, the figure hurried forward and knelt amongst the newly pressed hoof-prints, their fingers scrabbling frantically in the forest soil. Perhaps, if they were _very _lucky, the Centaurs had just kicked up the dirt along with anything that might have been buried. Or, they could have just kicked it underneath some more…

Suddenly, the person stopped moving and took in a breath. Could it be? Or was it just the moonlight? They reached out with a trembling hand and the fingers touched something smooth and hard. It was real! By God, it was real!

Letting out a sigh of exaltation, the figure picked up the object and gazed reverently at their treasure. Finally…after years and years of searching, luck had finally smiled down at them. The individual brought the artifact up to their eyes to study it closely. Yes…there was the triangle, the circle inside it, and the line that bisected them both…

At last, at long last, the Resurrection Stone had been found.

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><p>Please R&amp;R!<p> 


	2. Chapter 1

**What Your Parents Didn't Tell You**

Disclaimer: I own nothing Harry Potter.

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><p>"DAAAAD! James took my broom and he won't give it back!"<p>

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did NOT!"

Harry sighed, leant back in the chair and rubbed his eyes. He had thought that once the boys became teenagers, they would be done with the whole stealing blame game. Clearly, he was wrong. Before he could do anything, the door to his office burst open and James and Albus ran in, both eager to make their case.

"Dad!" the green-eyed boy whined. "James took my broom when I was looking for the Quaffle in the garage! I left it by the stairs when I left!"

"I was up in my room, you git! I wouldn't have known what you'd be doing!" James snapped back.

"James!" Harry said in a warning tone, glaring sternly over his glasses. "Now, Albus, you said you left your broom by the stairs?"

"Yes, right at the bottom!"

"Hmm…" Harry leaned back in his chair, looking very thoughtful. "That's rather fascinating…" The boys looked at him curiously, Albus with a confused face while James was apprehensive.

"What?" Harry deliberately gave a shrug.

"It seems that your broom isn't the only thing that has disappeared, Albus. Something from my desk has gone missing, too." Albus' eyes grew wide at that; he didn't notice the shifting motions his brother was making next to him. Harry nodded solemnly. "In fact, a pair of Extendable Ears has been misplaced. You two haven't seen it anywhere by any chance?"

"No!" Albus' answer was full of astonishment and sincerity but James', on the other hand, was a little too hasty. Aha! Just as he suspected…

"James?" Harry stared pointedly at his eldest son, his brow furrowing. "Care to share something with us?" James stood up straighter, struggling not to let his guard down. Finally, his body sagged and he dug into his jacket pocket, pulling out two Extendable Ears. He avoided his father's eyes as he reluctantly handed it back over. "Well, Albus, that's how your broom went missing," Harry said, disapproval written all over his face. Albus immediately rounded on James.

"You took the Extendable Ears and listened till I was in the garage?" James scoffed at him.

"Mum still hasn't picked mine up from Quality Qudditch Supplies, it's still getting fixed! I need _something_ to practice with!"

"You'll still have to wait till Mum gets it then, cos this one's _mine_!"

"James Sirius and Albus Severus!" Harry's slightly raised voice brought the boys back to the present moment, making them self-conscious and ashamed. "James, I've been over this with you: I know Uncle George gave these to you, but the last time you used them was inappropriate. That's why I confiscated them and that's why they are here in my office. Until you learn that the Ears are _not _used for sneaking around, I won't be giving them back to you anytime soon. Understand?"

"Yes, Dad."

"And Albus, if your broom goes missing again, just use one of the spares. It doesn't matter that they're old," Harry cut off the protest that was about to erupt. "They're perfectly fine to use for practice."

"Yes, Dad."

Just then, the front door open and Harry could hear his wife and daughter coming in. He heaved a sigh. "Now budge along, your mum and sister are back." James and Albus sulkily left the office, clearly not satisfied with their lot. Harry shook his head and dumped the Extendable Ears into a drawer just as Ginny walked in.

"I saw the boys coming out," she said in lieu of a greeting, her arms crossed. "Anything wrong?"

"The usual. James doesn't want to wait for his broom to come out of repair, stole the Ears I took from him to listen for a chance to take Albus'. You didn't miss much." Harry stood up and moved over to his wife, kissing her forehead as she let out a huff.

"I told him we'd pick it up when we're getting Lily's things for school," she muttered, hugging Harry in return.

"It's that Weasley impatience, you know."

"Shut up, Potter," Ginny smiled, whacking him on the shoulder. Harry grinned and followed her out of his office to help with dinner.

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><p>Later that night, the kids were fast asleep in their beds, while Harry and Ginny sat down in the parlor together. Harry sat on the couch, going over new applications for Auror positions, while Ginny lay down with her head on his lap, revising her account of the latest match between the Grodzisk Goblins and the Heidelberg Harriers. She arched her head back, trying to look up at her husband.<p>

"Anyone striking your fancy?" Harry frowned and shook his head.

"Not really. I mean, the number of people who want to join just because I'm the Head has gone down, but they sometimes still pop up. Like this one." He lifted the parchment he was holding in his right hand and read aloud: " 'I want to join the Auror Department because the greatest wizard of our age, Harry Potter, is the Head and I would like to follow in his footsteps and become a fighter against Dark Magic.' Honestly? I don't think this person is anywhere near N.E.W.T. level yet with a statement like that. And just because of who I am, what I did…" Harry fell silent, tossing the parchment aside with a grimace. Ginny sat up and looked at him steadily.

"You don't miss any of that, do you?" she asked, almost rhetorically. "Fighting Voldemort, and all the attention that came out of that?" He shifted his gaze to her, his green eyes weary.

"No. No, I don't. You know how much it bothered me, Ginny." Harry took one of her hands and squeezed it. "If I could, I wish that it was someone else that got stuck with that prophecy. I wish I could have had a normal life." Silence fell over them as they sat there just holding hands. "But," Harry continued with a small smile. "It's ok. I got you. I got three great kids. I finally have a normal life."

"As normal as it gets around here," Ginny smiled. Harry chuckled and kissed her in gratitude.

As they settled back to their original spots, Harry couldn't help but let his mind wander away from the Auror applications and into more gloomy thoughts. It was true, he didn't miss the adoring crowds fawning over him just because of that Halloween in 1981. He didn't miss people wanting to associate with him just because of his name. Nor was the stress of running and counteracting against Voldemort particularly missed.

But…

Did he actually miss the excitement that came with fighting evil? Did he really miss the adrenaline rushes, the thrill of knowing that he was ridding the world of something that had destroyed his own all those years ago? Maybe, just _maybe_…

Suddenly, there was a tapping at the window, startling them both. Harry grabbed his wand and edged toward the window, with Ginny following him with her own wand in hand. They squinted into the darkness, dimly seeing a flurry of feathers and a beak.

"Oh! Isn't that Cynbel?" Ginny exclaimed, relaxing her wand arm. Harry shoved his wand back into his pocket and hurriedly threw open the window. Sure enough, Cynbel, the brown colored great horned owl of Kingsley Shacklebolt, swooped in and settled on an owl perch bought especially for him. Harry took the letter Cynbel offered and gave him some treats and water.

"It's probably just Kingsley telling me to hurry up and pick some new Auror trainees," he sniffed, tearing the seal off. "I told him I was going over the applications…" He unfurled the parchment and began to read:

_Harry,_

_I'm afraid something of the utmost importance has been brought to my attention in the past few days, something that involves you. I cannot put all of the details down in this letter, as it is too lengthy to explain. Therefore, I am asking you to meet me at Trafalgar Square on Friday at half past eleven in Muggle dress; with so many Muggles around, we can blend in much easier._

_Also, I've taken the liberty of contacting Ron and Hermione and asked them to come as well. I know that the three of you work better together than apart, most especially after all you've been through. Besides, I have a feeling that they will object if I exclude them both from this matter._

_Give my best regards to Ginny,_

_Kingsley_

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><p>Thanks for R&amp;R!<p> 


	3. Chapter 2

**What Your Parents Didn't Tell You**

Disclaimer: I own nothing Harry Potter. Nothing at all.

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><p>Kingsley was quite right; Trafalgar Square was crowded with Muggle tourists, with it being the end of May and all. Harry quickly crossed the busy, crowded street, avoiding the near bumper-to-bumper of cars as he went. Neither Ron, Hermione, nor Kingsley were there yet, so Harry sauntered up the memorial's steps and up to one of the enormous lions that sat glaring at the London traffic.<p>

Kingsley's unexpected letter had been most puzzling to both him and Ginny, who seemed to sense that the whole thing was more complicated than Harry believed it to be.

"_It might be another issue that Dumbledore never got around to telling you. Or never bothered to tell you. You know that things are never simple when it comes to you, Harry. Just be careful."_

Ginny's words were true enough, but for once, Harry wanted to believe that it was just some little thing left over from his Hogwarts days, which is why Kingsley wanted Ron and Hermione to come as well. However, there was a nagging voice in the back of his head telling him otherwise…

Harry shook his head and adjusted his glasses, turning to look over the lion's head, when he broke out into a smile as he spotted some familiar looking people coming from the Charing Cross side: a tall, ginger-haired man and a brown, bushy-haired woman.

Ron and Hermione Weasley walked briskly toward Trafalgar Square, hand in hand. Ron was as tall and lanky as ever, his freckles only slightly faded. His penchant for jumpers had evolved from pullover to button-up, just like his father. Hermione never really grew out of dressing less than smart casual, and today was no different. She had a knee-length skirt with a matching jacket, along with mid-heeled shoes. Her bushy hair was tied back neatly out of her face in a knot. The two spotted Harry and hurried through the crowd as Harry ran down the steps to meet them.

"Harry!" Hermione rushed forward and hugged him in greeting, nearly knocking the wind out of him. "How are you?"

"Brilliant!" Harry gasped, patting Hermione's back. "Just brilliant, Hermione."

"Careful, Hermione," Ron grinned. "Don't kill him." He and Harry clapped each other on the back once Hermione had pulled away. "Everything alright?"

"Yeah, fine," Harry said. "You?"

"Everything's quite well. Hugo's getting excited about starting at Hogwarts and Rose is already looking into O.W.L.s," Hermione said proudly. Ron rolled his eyes.

"Just like her mother," he smirked. "She's only a third year and she's worrying about what's ahead." Hermione smiled and lightly prodded her husband in the ribs. "How are things at home?" Harry sighed and gave a grin.

"The boys are…well…boys, as usual. Lily's starting Hogwarts this year, she can't wait to go with Hugo." The joy of catching up with his two best friends deflated suddenly, and he bit his lip. "Kingsley didn't say why he wanted to see us, did he?" Harry asked in a low voice. Ron shook his head, looking just as bemused.

"No, he didn't, Harry," Hermione said. "I can't think of why he would call us. Voldemort's gone, and you've caught most of the Death Eaters that were still at large."

"Unless, there's something that we overlooked," Ron said, frowning. Harry shook his head.

"Impossible. I'm pretty sure we covered everything Voldemort related. There's been nothing concerning him, nothing at all. Ginny thought it was something Dumbledore 'forgot' to mention, like there's still something else that Voldemort had out there and it's hidden." Ron snorted.

"It wouldn't be the first time Dumbledore's done that."

"Ron," Hermione said reproachfully. "If Dumbledore had no reason to tell Harry of something, then it probably wasn't important or crucial to the overall plan." Her brown eyes, however, told a different story, showing Harry that even she was second-guessing herself. Suddenly uncomfortable, he looked out into the crowd surrounding them; thankfully, he saw a tall, bald, black man coming towards them.

"We'll soon find out," he said, nodding over their heads. Ron and Hermione turned around to see Kingsley Shacklebolt making his way through a group of Muggle tourists. The Minister of Magic was dressed just as neatly as Hermione, if not even more smartly; the little golden earring in his right ear glittered as he walked. He gave a subdued smile upon reaching the trio.

"Good morning, Harry, Ron, Hermione," Kingsley greeted them all. "I'm very glad you are all here."

"Kingsley, what-?" But Harry was cut off as the man held up a hand.

"We need to move," he explained. "Even though we're able to blend in as Muggles here, it'd be better to have this discussion somewhere private." Ron and Hermione caught Harry's eye and nodded, all three of them knowing exactly where to go.

"Of course," Harry said quietly. "Grimmauld Place. Apparating will be the quickest way to get there." Kingsley nodded and nonchalantly began to stroll away from the memorial. Harry, Ron, and Hermione followed suit, masking their burning curiosity with indifference. Grimmauld Place had been the only place nearby that Harry could think of; he had reclaimed Sirius' family home after Voldemort died, and he and Ginny kept it clean, but they rarely used the house. But now was a good time for it…

They followed the Minister down an empty alleyway filled only with rubbish bins. Kingsley looked around carefully before nodding at Harry. Harry closed his eyes and, concentrating hard on seeing the old Black family home in his mind, and turned on the spot.

He could feel the air rushing past him and the others following him as he apparated in front of Number Twelve. Three popping noises told Harry that Ron, Hermione, and Kingsley had arrived safely, so he pulled out his wand and tapped the keyhole. Instantly, the house recognized its owner and the front door swung open. Everyone hurried inside and settled down in the drawing room on the first floor. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all shared one couch while Kingsley sat in the one facing them.

"All right, Kingsley," Ron said. "What's this all about?" Kingsley looked at them gravely.

"Last night, I received news of a trespasser on Hogwarts' grounds. Normally, the castle's protective enchantments should have taken care of everything, but whoever broke in somehow worked around every spell the Hogwarts' teachers keep up year round, even during summer holidays." Hermione frowned worryingly.

"Does this have to do with Voldemort?" she asked quietly.

"No, at least, not on the surface," Kingsley replied. "You destroyed all of the Horcruxes twenty-one years ago, Harry. By all means, Voldemort is dead once and for all." Harry's green eyes narrowed as Kingsley trailed off.

"But?" Harry prompted. "What happened, Kingsley?" The older man looked at the three friends before staring straight into Harry's eyes.

"Dumbledore's tomb has been broken into again. The Elder Wand is gone."

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><p>Thanks for R&amp;R!<p> 


	4. Chapter 3

**What Your Parents Didn't Tell You**

Disclaimer: I own nothing Harry Potter.

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><p>There was a dead silence after Kingsley gave the news. It was impossible, there was no way this could be happening. Harry blinked once, sure he had misheard.<p>

"Gone?" he asked quietly. "What do you mean, gone?"

"Just what I said," Kingsley replied, his hands clasping together. "Dumbledore's body hasn't been abused in any way. It's clear that the Elder Wand was the only thing that mattered."

"Do you think it's a Death Eater we haven't gotten to yet?" Ron asked, his face deathly white. His hand has fisting in his pocket, fingers clenching around his wand as though the perpetrator was in the house. "Someone who wants to follow in their old master's footsteps?"

"It can't be," Hermione said, looking extremely shaken at the news. "There's still a large majority of the Wizarding population that believes that the Tale of the Three Brothers is just a fairy tale. Besides, Voldemort didn't confide in his followers, he operated alone for the most part."

"But, Hermione, someone must have found out about the Hallows," Harry cut in, his hand automatically going up to touch his lightning bolt scar. He shouldn't have done it really, there was no pain, there hadn't been for twenty-one years, but he couldn't help it. "Probably someone like Rita Skeeter did some digging and let slip to a Death Eater about them. Or maybe it _was _a Death Eater who found out themselves and is trying to make themselves into another Voldemort." He looked back at Kingsley, who was studying the trio carefully. "Is there anyone who was in the Order or in the Ministry who might have found out?"

"None but you three, Ginny, myself, and Minerva know about the Hallows' existence. We are all very careful not to give anything away."

"Security breach in the Ministry, then?" The minister's face darkened.

"It's possible," he said slowly. "I know we've taken great pains to keep security functioning efficiently but even the best organizations can be penetrated if the enemy keeps at it diligently and long enough." Kingsley frowned, obviously displeased at the possible laxness of his Ministry security team. "But we can deal with that later. What I'm most concerned about, Harry, is that whoever this person is, is going to try to get to you." Harry blinked, momentarily confused.

"Me?" Both Ron and Hermione gave a scoff of disbelief.

"Of course you, Harry!" Ron exclaimed. "You've got one of the Hallows, remember?"

"Harry, this person is going to try to get your Invisibility Cloak!" Hermione said. "And they are very likely to do anything to get at it!" Suddenly, Harry had a sickening vision of Ginny, James, Albus, and Lily all lying dead at home at the hands of some raving mad Dark wizard. Just like his parents…no, he could not let that happen to him. Not again. Shaking his head, Harry sat up straight, his resolve steeling.

"What about the Stone? I know I mentioned dropping it on the grounds, but let's be honest, the grounds are extensive. How can a single person find it?"

"If they can get past Hogwarts security, break into Dumbledore's tomb, and steal the Death Stick without getting caught, then they could find the Resurrection Stone without any trouble," Kingsley said darkly. "I know some of the history books have ventured a guess that you dropped it around Aragog's old nest, especially since so called 'researchers' have been poking around that area." Ron's ears went scarlet red as they usually did when he was stressed.

"Ok, so let's say that whoever this bloke is, he's got the Elder Wand and the Stone and now he's planning to get the Cloak. We can try to track him, right? He must have left something behind on accident, something that might identify him." It was here that Kingsley hesitated, which made Harry uncomfortable. Hermione glanced at him and sensing his discomfort, asked for him,

"What is it, Kingsley?" He was not looking at her or at Ron, but straight at Harry with a look that Harry didn't like. Kingsley, in the first time in Harry's memory, was looking uncertain and worried; that was too much, and Harry took in a shaky breath. This wasn't right, Kingsley was the one who always remained calm and never gave a hint to any emotional turmoil he might have brewing underneath. Finally, after a moment of uncomfortable silence, the black man reached into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out what looked like a tattered piece of paper.

"Something _was _found. Which is the main reason I called you here, Harry." He handed it to Harry, and Ron and Hermione huddled around to see better, and Harry felt his heart leap quite suddenly into his throat, only to plummet back down just as quickly.

It was an old photograph, a Wizarding photograph, for the people in the picture were moving. They appeared to be somewhere on the Cornish coast, quite possibly on summer holiday. But their faces didn't have the happy, carefree expressions one would normally expect when on holiday. The photographed people looked rather solemn, as though they had a great weight on their shoulders, their hair blowing rather pathetically in the sea wind.

For the first time in his life, Harry was looking at a rather serious and darker version of James and Lily Potter.

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><p>Thanks for R&amp;R!<p> 


	5. Chapter 4

**What Your Parents Didn't Tell You**

Disclaimer: I own nothing Harry Potter.

**A/N:** Sorry for the delay, fall semester started for me. As graduate school is going to eat most of my time, updates will happen whenever I can spare the time. Thanks!

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><p>It had been an hour since Kingsley had left Grimmauld Place, having been unable to give any more information about the Hogwarts break-in, but Harry wasn't thinking about that. In fact, he was still feeling slightly anxious that someone, this clearly suspicious person, had had access to something of James and Lily's. He, Ron, and Hermione had moved down to the kitchen, where Harry just sat at the table, staring blankly at the picture he now held in his hands. It unnerved him to see his parents like this, he had never seen the likes of it before, and he did not like it at all. Why? Why were they like this? They had always been so happy before, so why now…?<p>

"Harry?" Harry jerked, almost knocking over a cup of tea that Hermione must have placed before him some time ago. He looked up and saw Hermione and Ron sitting across from him, eyeing him warily. "Listen, mate," Ron started carefully. "I know this looks bad, but this bloke couldn't have gotten that picture from anyone we know. We would have heard about it."

"That's not the point, Ron," Harry bit out. "The point is that they can get to me, or the people I care about, actually. If they can get this picture of my parents, then they can get to…" He broke off violently, trying not to think of seeing Ginny, his children, Ron, or Hermione lying dead in his mind's eye. Ron looked at Hermione pleadingly, as though hoping she could say something without getting lashed out at. She squeezed her husband's hand briefly before taking a deep breath.

"Harry, please listen. I think we can rule out that whoever this person is, they could not have been to your house," she reasoned. "After all, you have protective charms put up all around the grounds and you would know if any of them went off. The same goes with your Gringotts' vault." Harry jerked and this time really did hit his teacup, sloshing some tea out on to the table.

"Gringotts! They could have gotten this picture from my vault!" He shot up out of his chair, ignoring the protesting cries from his friends, whipping his jacket around him and shoving the photograph into the inside pocket. If he didn't see his parents' somber faces, then he could believe that he had never seen them at all.

"Harry, there's no way your vault was broken into!" Ron exclaimed, grabbing the green-eyed man by the arm firmly but not so that it hurt. "Security there is as tight as it always has been!"

"Has it?" Harry asked rhetorically in a sarcastic tone. "Remember Quirrell breaking in to get the Philosopher's Stone in our first year? Remember us when we were hunting the Horcruxes? Because if security's still like that, then I'm not taking any chances!" Ron opened his mouth to say something, but Harry didn't wait to hear it. Hermione watched helplessly as he ran out the front door, looking at Ron in bewilderment.

"He does have a point, Ron," she sighed. "If we were able to get in to Bellatrix's vault all those years ago, who's to say that someone else could have gotten into Harry's vault?"

"But what would Harry's parents have to do with the Deathly Hallows? The only one that's connected to them is the Invisibility Cloak!"

"I don't know, Ron, but if there is a connection, someone just may start up the war again with Harry." Her brown eyes shone with the threat of tears that had not quite fallen. "And I don't think I can go through that again."

Ron frowned, clearly frustrated at his best friend's behavior, but he pulled Hermione into a hug and kissed the top of her head.

"We're going to figure this out," he muttered, feeling her arms squeeze around him gratefully. "Come on, we got to catch up with Harry."

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><p>By the time Ron and Hermione had caught up with Harry, they were striding down the street to the Leaky Cauldron in strained silence. Happily, no one in the pub approached Harry to pester him about the Second War or his celebrity; he had only one goal in mind and that was to get to Gringotts as quickly as possible. The trio pushed their way out to the small courtyard at the back of the pub and walked straight up to the brick wall. Harry pulled out his wand, tapped the bricks three up and two across, and stood back as the wall tore open to create an archway into Diagon Alley.<p>

The shopping district was not too busy today, but still, shopkeepers were having luck with little groups of customers here and there. Not bothering to look around, Harry strode straight toward the back of the alley, towards the white, glistening building that was Gringotts Bank. Harry, Ron, and Hermione went through the bronze doors, past the lines of goblins working at the long stretch of counter, and right up to the main one at the back of the hall. A goblin with a rather large nose, wiry hair, and black eyes looked up from his accounting book as they stopped before him.

"Mr. Potter," the goblin said, his eyes narrowing slightly. Harry didn't flinch, but stared back at the goblin just as hard.

"I'd like to go to my vault, please." The goblin turned his gaze to Ron and Hermione.

"They may not come. They are not holders of the account."

"They're with me," Harry said shortly, eager to get down to his vault. Besides, he wanted Ron and Hermione with him; they had been with him for almost his whole life, he would not leave them behind now. The goblin's brow furrowed in displeasure, but he did not protest any further.

"Your key?" Harry reached into this jacket pocket, trying not to think of the photograph there, and pulled out the little golden key. He handed it to the goblin, who examined it, and nodded. "This way."

The ride down into the caverns was uneventful, but Harry's heart beat faster as the cart zoomed up and around its track. He was almost afraid as to what he'd find or wouldn't find in his vault. True, the goblins were very good at keeping wizarding vaults safe, but as even he had proven, they could be broken into with a bit of help. The cart slowed to a stop, and the goblin jumped out. He turned Harry's key in the lock and swung the door in, standing back. Casting a look at Ron and Hermione, Harry slowly climbed out of the cart and into the dark vault.

"Incendio." Instantly, the wall torches lit up, casting a warm glow over the vault's interior. Nothing seemed to be out of place; piles of Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts lay all over the floor. "Look for anything peculiar," he said over his shoulder. Harry could hear Ron and Hermione move toward the walls of the vault, checking every corner. He inched his way around his money, looking for anything that might seem out of the ordinary; but then again, what had he ever seen in here other than cold hard coins? Thinking back to the first time he had been here, Harry couldn't remember seeing anything else that Lily and James had put in here. Blocking out the clinking noises that came from Ron's rummaging, Harry tried to step over a particular wide pile of Knuts, but slipped over a few stray ones. Falling, he threw out a hand to stop himself from hitting the floor, which slid into a pile of Sickles. His face registered surprise as he felt something buried under that pile, something hard and wooden.

"Harry! Harry, are you alright?" He ignored Hermione's voice as he wrapped his fingers around the buried object and pulled it out. The Sickles slid to the stone floor with a clang, revealing an ancient wooden box, mostly plain but decorated with engravings here and there. The box seemed to be roughly the shape and depth of Muggle boxes for letter sized papers. It had to have been buried under that pile of money for so long that it had accumulated a large amount of dust and spider web fragments. So interested was Harry in examining the box that he barely registered Ron and Hermione hurrying toward him.

"Did you find something?" Ron asked, almost slipping over the same Knuts Harry had tried to step over earlier.

"I've never seen this before," Harry muttered, running a finger over the top of the box, feeling the engravings. He could not understand what they said, as they looked to be of an old forgotten language. There was a keyhole at the front of the box, copper and rusted from time. "May I please see my vault key?" Harry asked the goblin. The goblin silently handed the key over; Harry handed the box to Ron to hold as he tried to slip the key in to the lock. The key did not fit at all.

"Hagrid never gave you another key when you first came here, did he?" Hermione asked, studying the keyhole curiously.

"No, just the vault key."

"I don't suppose Dumbledore ever said anything about this box?"

"Nothing." Harry sighed in disappointment. No one had told him about this box ever; if Dumbledore had known, this was another secret he had taken to the grave. His parents had never left anything that mentioned it either. And this seemed to be the only clue that would provide an answer to the gloomy picture of Lily and James on the Cornish coast and maybe, _just maybe_, the disappearance of the Elder Wand from Dumbledore's tomb. Harry idly ran a finger down the front of the box and slid it into the keyhole, wishing there was a key for it. Suddenly, the lock clicked, causing all three to jump. Harry yanked his finger away and to his amazement, the box lid sprung open, making Ron almost drop the thing entirely. Peering inside, a treasure trove of old parchment lay cluttered in the box, with even more photographs inside.

"Oh, my!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes shining. "These parchment leaves have to go back to the Tudor period, maybe even earlier!"

"But how could I open it?" Harry asked, staring at the contents in wonder. "There was no key!"

"Sometimes, wizards and witches can create protection charms that work only for certain people," Ron explained, shifting the box so that he could get a better grip on it. "I've seen it out in the field when we've had to get into some personal items in our investigations. Usually the charm is designed to recognize immediate family members, like the caster's kids or their siblings. Sometimes they make it so that only their husband or wife can break the charm. Looks like your parents made it so that only you can open this box, Harry."

"You knew that?" Hermione asked, her eyebrows raising and a slight smile on her lips. Ron chuckled.

"Always the tone of surprise." He strained to look over the lid and asked, "What about those photos?" Harry snatched the topmost one and examined it; his throat constricted at what he saw.

Again, Lily and James were in this one, but at a distance. They were climbing a slightly steep hill, heading to a single tower on top. Surrounding the tower were grassy knolls, and a little further out was a town in the middle of green fields and hedgerows as far as the eye could see. Hermione and Ron studied the picture as well.

"Harry," Hermione said slowly. "This is Glastonbury. Your parents are heading up to the Tor in this one. What does this picture have to do with the one of them in Cornwall?" Harry blinked once, twice, and finally looked up at her, a confused and distraught expression on his face.

"I don't know."

* * *

><p>Thanks for R&amp;R!<p> 


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